Immigration reform and startups

SAN FRANCISCO — The big push for immigration reform is off and running, but some in the tech industry are hoping startups don’t get left in the dust.

The question of an entrepreneur visa has emerged after the initial euphoria over the Senate’s Immigration Innovation Act, or I-Squared, which would address the major workforce needs of big tech companies.

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A visa option is missing in the proposal that quickly won industry support, and some say its inclusion is important to encourage talented people worldwide in the science, technology, engineering and math fields to create businesses in the United States.

The entrepreneur idea was in Startup Act 2.0, legislation by Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.). That plan would have allowed those legally in the U.S. on certain visas to stay and set up businesses as long as they meet funding requirements and hire U.S. citizens. Currently, those entrepreneurs often self-petition for H-1Bs, which can be difficult.

The Startup Act 2.0 is expected to be reintroduced in coming weeks, according to a Senate staffer.

And Sens. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said this week they would introduce the Startup Visa Act, which former Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) introduced last year with Udall. That bill would allow foreign entrepreneurs with U.S. investors or revenue to come to the United States.

How important a special entrepreneurial visa will be in the larger immigration reform discussion remains to be seen.

I-Squared, introduced by Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), as well as Rubio and Coons, would raise the cap on H-1B temporary work visas and adjust the visas available based on market demand. While that proposal makes sense to many in the tech industry, some lawmakers may be concerned about the potential impact on U.S. citizens and jobs. The act also would free up more green cards by removing categories of people now counted in the available green card pool.

“I-Squared is terrific,” Steve Case, founder and former chief executive of AOL and now a venture capitalist, told POLITICO. “I’m totally supportive of it.” He also added that entrepreneur visas are “a good idea.”

John Doerr, a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, said in a statement by TechNet that “the positive impact that immigrant entrepreneurs and engineers have had on our economy is profound. They establish one quarter of U.S. technology startup companies and the jobs that come with this growth. They are critical for U.S. competitiveness in the global economy. We urgently need to improve our STEM pipeline and change our immigration laws. I-Squared is a positive step toward these reforms.”